


You had me at Pizza

by Quagswagging



Category: Formula 1 RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pizza Place, Budding Love, Cuddling & Snuggling, Family, M/M, Sharing a Bed, Shy!Max, Social Anxiety
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-22
Updated: 2019-08-22
Packaged: 2020-09-24 04:17:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,543
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20352253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Quagswagging/pseuds/Quagswagging
Summary: Shy student Max loves his job in a small pizzeria.But when he has to take a delivery shift, his social skills are put to the test, especially when having to interact with the most popular guy of the whole university.





	You had me at Pizza

**Author's Note:**

> basically a pizza/student AU which got very out of hand

“Hello mister Räikkönen.” Max greeted softly as he entered the small restaurant. Mister Räikkönen looked up from where he was scribbling something onto the menu board.

“Hi Max.” He greeted. “You’re early. And I told you already, you can call me Kimi.” He answered, throwing Max his apron and cap.

“Sorry, Kimi.” Max answered softly, lowering his eyes. Kimi walked over and patted his shoulder.

“It’s okay. Seb needs your help with the tables first, and then you can come and help me in the kitchen, yeah?” He explained. Max gave him a small smile. 

“Sure.” He nodded, longily glancing to the safety of the kitchen. He had been hired part time in the small pizzeria a little over a year ago as a side job to afford going to college, and he loved it. At first, it was mostly as a help in the kitchen, prepping ingredients and doing dishes, but over time he had been asked to do more and more in the service as well. He didn’t like that part of the job very much. He had never been very social, and talking to strangers scared the shit out of him.

He had quietly accepted the work though, but it didn’t take long before Seb had gently asked him if he was alright with the waiter part of the job. Ever since then, Seb had been more careful about building up the amount of time Max worked in the front of the house, and made sure to stay close in case it became too much for the young student.

“Hi Max!” Seb greeted as he came out of the backroom with a pile of napkins. “We just need to set some tables for a big reservation tonight.” He said, handing Max the napkins and walking away to grab the boxes of cutlery Max had polished the day before.

They worked quickly while Seb asked him how college was going. Max answered the questions, but when Seb asked if he had gone to the fun fair two days prior, Max fell silent. Fun fair was something you went to with friends, and Max didn’t really have any, well not close enough to go to the fair with. Seb must have noticed the tense look on Max’s face, because he walked over and slung an arm around Max’s shoulders.

“Forget I asked.” He said softly, pressing a kiss to Max’s temple. Max blushed but leaned into the touch. Seb and Kimi were like the kind and warm family he never had. Sebastian grinned and properly pulled him into a hug. They were interrupted by Kimi tapping the service bell, the Finn raising an eyebrow at them.

“Can you cut some tomatoes for me, Max?” he asked. Max nodded and hurried into the kitchen with a last smile at Seb. He cut an array of vegetables under Kimi’s watchful eye, the Finn giving him occasional tips or squeezing his shoulders when Max was doing well. The peace was broken when Charles, one of the delivery boys, basically stumbled into the restaurant.

“Evening.” He greeted, voice sounding muffled. His cheeks were flushed and his eyes squinted as if the light was hurting him. Sebastian was instantly at his side, feeling his forehead and tutting.

“You are burning up, Charles.” He said worriedly. Charles huffed.

“I feel fine.” He said, before breaking out in a fit of harsh coughs. Kimi walked over too, worriedly brushing his fingers over Charles’s cheek.

“You can’t work like this, sweetie.” He said. Charles squared his shoulders.

“I’ll be fine.” He mumbled. Seb shook his head.

“Go home and sleep it off, darling.” He said. Charles pouted.

“But you have no one to deliver the pizzas if I go home…” he muttered. Kimi and Seb exchanged a look for a moment.

“I guess we won’t do deliveries today then.” Kimi said. Max bit his lip. He knew most of the revenue came from the deliveries, and to miss out on a whole shift was a lot.

“I-I can do it.” He blurted out. “I mean I finished most of the vegetables already a-and I can ride the scooter so…” he played with a loose thread on his shirt. He knew he’d have to interact with a lot of strangers, something he felt very uncomfortable doing, but was his change to help Kimi and Seb after everything they’d done for him. Kimi stared at him for a moment.

“Are you sure?” he asked. Max nodded.

“It’s important for you. I'll survive.” He said firmly. Seb smiled in relieve..

“Thanks honey.” He said softly, before turning to Charles. “Come on, I have time to drive you home before the restaurant opens.” Charles nodded and snuggled into Seb’s side as they headed out of the restaurant and to the car park. Kimi walked back to where Max was waiting.

“You can just say if it becomes too much, okay?” he said. Max gave him a small smile and nodded.

“I will, don’t worry.”

~~

The first dreaded delivery order came in just after Seb came back from bringing Charles home. Max nervously packed the two pizzas up and placed them in the box on the back of the scooter. Seb had walked out with him, talking him through everything he needed to know.

“I’ll be fine, Seb.” Max chuckled anxiously. Sebastian sighed and pressed a kiss to Max’s forehead.

“Thank you for doing this, Max, it means a lot.” he said. Max blushed.

“It’s just a small trip on a scooter, I’ll be fine.” he muttered, straightening his cap. Seb fussed over him for another moment before pulling away.

“Okay I really need to get back now or Kimi will kill me, good luck, if you need anything, call me.” Max nodded as Sebastian walked back to the restaurant, and waved as he drove away with the scooter.

He could do this, he told himself, he would be fine. 

The delivery address was not too far from the restaurant. It was a nice house with a small front garden where a happily barking golden retriever greeted him. Max smiled at the dog but quickly moved past him with the pizzas, knocking on the front door. 

A pretty blonde man opened the door, hair tousled and only dressed in a bathrobe.

“Marcus, pizza is here! Get some change for the tip!” He yelled into the house when he saw Max. Max smiled shyly.

“It’s €15.90, sir.” He said. The man nodded and took the pizzas, setting them on the table just inside the hall. A second blonde man come into the hall, taller than the first but similarly dressed. He handed the smaller man some coins and pressed a lingering kiss to his neck before peaking into the pizza boxes with an excited grin.

“Here love, keep the change.” The smaller man grinned. Max blushed once he realised the tip must be more than 5€.

“T-thank you, sir.” He squeaked, putting the money in his pocket and giving the two a last nod.

“Bye sweetie!” The smaller man called before closing the door, the taller blonde named Marcus already scarfing down his first slice of pizza. Max shook his head, slightly bewildered, and quickly headed back to his scooter.

The next few deliveries went by quickly, and before Max knew it, it was already past 9 and he knew the deliveries stopped at 9.30.

Parking the scooter in front of the restaurant, Max walked in with his helmet in his hand.

“Any more deliveries?” He asked Valtteri, the sous chef. Valtteri nodded.

“One more. For a frat party I think.” the Finn spoke. Max paled a little, nibbling his bottom lip. Valtteri gave him a worried look.

“I’m sure I can go if you’re uncomfortable with it. You just need to help Kimi finish cleaning the kitchen.” He said. Max shrugged.

“I’ll be fine.” He mumbled. Valtteri gave him a small smile and squeezed his shoulder.

“Check the order with Kimi, he has the right address.” Valtteri told him, before turning away to finish some plates with panna cottas. Max walked over to Kimi, who was talking to Sebastian at the register.

“Is the order ready?” He asked softly. Kimi nodded.

“Yes, it’s the 6 pizzas and the 3 boxes there.” He said, pointing at the pile. “I’ll help you carry.” 

The order barely fit on the scooter but they succeeded eventually. Kimi seemed uneasy about something, and placed a hand on Max’s shoulder.

“If they are drunk and something happens, safety comes before the payment, okay?” Kimi said. Max nodded.

“O-okay…” he said softly, blushing slightly. Kimi smiled and patted his cheek.

“See you soon.” He said, before heading back inside.

The 7 minute drive over to the address was the longest 7 minutes of Max’s life. When he arrived, he could hear music playing out of the open windows, but the party, contrary to Kimi’s and Valtteri’s believe, seemed quite small.

Knocking on the door while holding 6 pizzas and 2 boxes with god knows what was more difficult than Max had anticipated. It also took him a few tries before the inhabitants heard him over the sound of the music. 

Max had his carefully practised dialogue ready for when the door opened, but his mouth went dry when he saw who it was.

Daniel Ricciardo, top of their engineering class, one of the most popular guys on the whole university, and one of the most beautiful guys Max had ever seen.

Max quickly tried to hide his face behind the stack of pizzas, but Daniel had already recognized him.

“Hey, Max, right?” Daniel asked, steadying the stack of pizzas as Max almost dropped them

‘Daniel Ricciardo knew his name, be cool, Max, be cool’ Max screamed internally. Externally, the only thing he succeeded at was smiling shyly and giving Dan a quick nod. Daniel grinned back at him.

“Can you help me carry the pizzas back inside, Max?” he asked. Max nodded, eyes still averted, but let Daniel take half of the stack. As they headed into the house, Max felt his heartbeat quicken. There were maybe 6 or 7 other guys in the small living room, all cheering when they spotted the pizza. Max blushed deeply and didn’t look anyone directly in the eye when he followed Daniel to set the pizzas on the small table. 

“Hi Max!” someone greeted softly. Max peeked up to see Pierre Gasly, another one of his peers, smiling at him.

“Hi…” Max mumbled in answer. Pierre bit his lip.

“You work with Charles right?” he asked. “Is he okay? I knew he had to work today but he looked like shit.” he said. Max swallowed thickly.

“Seb- my boss drove him home because he was sick. I took over the deliveries.” he mumbled. Pierre nodded.

“I better go back to check on him then.” he said, patting Max’s shoulder before practically running out the door. Max felt slightly bewildered and turned back around to where Daniel had been before. The Aussie was nowhere to be seen now, and Max instantly felt uneasy. The pizzas still had to be paid for, and right now he feared it would all go wrong. Max felt his chest clench uneasily as he swivelled around to properly look around the room, his eyes wide. 

“Are you okay?” a tall blonde man asked him, reaching out for his shoulder. Max stumbled away before he could be touched. He mumbled something incoherently about waiting outside, and burst out of the door, basically running back to the scooter. He flung his helmet on and ignored the person calling him from the house. As he drove away - probably faster than necessary - he started to cry. He had not only panicked yet again when meeting new people, he had also let Kimi and Sebastian down. The pizzas had not been paid for, and Max was scared to go back to the restaurant. 

Eventually, he knew he had to go back, but that didn’t mean he was in a hurry. He also took his time locking the scooter up when he arrived, taking off his helmet and wiping the tears off his cheeks. He quietly walked into the restaurant, hands trembling uncontrollably. Kimi spotted him and instantly seemed to realise something was off, for he immediately dropped the pan he had been cleaning and rushed out off the kitchen.

“Max…” he said worriedly, reaching for the young boy. Max let out a sob, stepping back.

“I-I’m so sorry.” he hiccuped. Kimi shushed him gently and drew him into his arms.

“It’s okay…” he whispered gently, rubbing Max’s back as the young man clung onto him. “What happened?” he asked as Max slowly calmed down. Max explained what had happened between sobs, still holding onto Kimi as if his life depended on it. Sebastian had moved over too, just as Max was explaining that he’d panicked and forgotten about the money. The German gently stroked Max’s hair, urging him to look at him. 

“It’s okay, darling.” he said softly. Max sniffled and shook his head.

“I-I’ll pay you back for the order…” he muttered. Sebastian pressed a kiss to Max’s forehead.

“You don’t have to. We understand.” Seb told him. Max lowered his eyes.

“I-I understand if you want to fire me…” he said meekly.

“Never, sweetheart.” Kimi said rather strongly. “You’re more important than a few unpaid pizzas. You’re like a son to us.” he added. Max blushed a deep red, but couldn’t help but smile. Now it was his turn to hug Kimi and Seb.

“Thank you.” he whispered, finally feeling his anxiety fall away. 

~~

The next evening, Max was safely back in the kitchen. Charles was still sick, but another delivery guy, a cheery Italian named Antonio, had taken the Monégasque’s shift. Max felt relieved to be back to his normal duties, but he still felt somewhat guilty for not getting paid for the pizzas. Hence why he worked extra hard, multitasking all he could to somewhat make up for it. Kimi and Sebastian didn’t seem to hold any grudge against him, which still surprised Max a little bit.

It was easy to focus on his work and to forget about the embarrassment of the day before. Still, it seemed fate had different plans.

It was just before closing time when Max spotted a very familiar mop of brown curls enter the restaurant. Instantly, he tensed and tried to hide behind Valtteri, who unfortunately for Max was a head shorter than him and therefore did little to hide him from view. Daniel’s eyes fell on him and he walked over to the open kitchen.

“Hi…” he said, seeming rather guilty. Max nodded in greeting and looked away. Sebastian had seen Daniel entered and walked over.

“Can I help you?” he still had an easy smile on his face, but he seemed more apprehensive. Daniel nodded.

“Eh yeah, I ordered some pizzas yesterday but it didn’t quite go right with the payment. So I figured I’d come to pay the bill.” he said, a small blush spreading over his cheeks. “And to eh… apologize to Max.” he added, glancing to where Max was pretending to be very interested in his sleeve. Sebastian seemed to decide to approve of the Aussie, and turned to the kitchen.

“Max, can you come help me with the transaction please.” he said. Max was very close to refusing, but eventually shuffled out of the kitchen and towards the counter. He didn’t dare look at Daniel and searched the computer for the right bill. Sebastian had made himself scarce, but Max knew he was probably keeping an eye on them from the kitchen.

“6 pizzas and 5 garlic bread… That’s 65 euros, please.” he mumbled, handing the slip to Daniel. Daniel nodded and took out his wallet.

“You can keep the change.” he muttered, holding out four 20 euro notes. Max finally looked up at him. 

“T-thank you.” he mumbled, putting the notes in the register. Daniel nodded mutely. He seemed a little out of his depth as well, which surprised Max a little bit.

“I’m sorry for running out like that yesterday.” Max spoke. “I-I just panicked.” he felt ridiculous admitting it, when Daniel still seemed more remorseful than put off. 

“I was wondering, me and some friends are going to play some board games tomorrow night, would you like to come as well?” Daniel asked. Max’s cheeks turned a deep tomato red.

“You don’t have to pity me…” Max mumbled. Daniel’s eyes widened.

“Oh no I didn’t mean it like that! You seem like a nice guy, I’d like for you to come.” he answered. Max still hesitated, unsure how to react. Daniel smiled softly at him, and reached for one of the restaurant’s business cards and a pen. He scribbled something on the back and pushed the card towards Max.

“This is my phone number, text me if you want to come, okay? Or if you just want to chat that’s fine too.” he said with a bright grin. Max took the card with a small smile.

“Thank you.” he said softly. Daniel grinned again.

“No worries, mate. I’ll see you around, yeah?” he said. Max nodded, and gave a hesitant wave as the curly haired man walked out of the restaurant.

“What a polite young man.” Sebastian teased as he walked back over to Max, slinging an arm over his shoulders. Max huffed.

“Shut up…” he grumbled, but he smiled nonetheless. 

“You should go, tomorrow I mean.” Kimi spoke up, also walking over. Max raised an eyebrow.

“I need to work tomorrow.” he chuckled. Kimi ruffled his hair.

“i’m sure we can miss you one day.” he said, glancing at Seb for the German’s approval. 

“Go and have fun, we’ll survive.”

~~

The next morning, it took Max a good half an hour to gather the courage to text Daniel, and when the Aussie didn’t reply for hours, Max was confused it had all been just a joke. He panicked completely when around 6, he saw Daniel was calling him. He debated pretending not to have heard it, but then picked up.

“H-Hi, this is Max speaking.” he spoke. 

“Hi Maxy! This is Dan, sorry I didn’t reply but I was at work.” the cheery Aussie explained. “Listen do you need a lift tonight? I need to pick up Carlos too and I think he lives in the same building as you. I probably can’t bring you back though but you can stay over or I can call a cab for you.” Daniel rambled, while sounding like he was on a run. max fumbled for words for a moment.

“I eh, it would be great if you could pick me up.” he decided eventually. “What time?” 

“Around 9, I’ll call you again when I’m there, okay?” Daniel answered.

“Sure, thanks Dan.” Max said, beginning to smile. He could practically see the smile on Dan’s face through the phone. Dan chuckled.

“Awesome, see you soon Maxy.” he said, before hanging up. Max was practically beaming as he dropped his phone on the sofa. He reached for his laptop and opened Skype, planning on calling one of his few true friends, who unfortunately had moved away for school.

“Maaaaaax!” Lando roared as he answered the Skype call. “Long time since I saw your ugly mug.” he giggled, rolling over on his back on the bed and holding the phone above him. Max chuckled at him.

“Sorry, I took up some extra shifts at work so I’ve been busy.” he explained. Lando hummed.

“You just forgot about me, huh? I bet you meet a nice guy somewhere and forgot your best friend still exists.” Lando said with a pout. Max blushed and looked away.

“I suppose that’s not completely untrue.” he mumbled. Lando gasped and sat up.

“You met someone? Oh my…. Give me the details!” he excitedly bounced up and down on the bed. Max rolled his eyes.

“It’s not like that… I mean I like him, I think, but he’ll never go for someone like me.” he sighed. Lando scoffed.

“Bullshit, you’re a catch.’ he drawled out. Max gave him an exasperated look.

“Thanks, but no one else seems to agree with you.” he answered. Lando shrugged.

“That will change. Now, tell me everything!” 

And Max did just that. Lando listened intently to his story, before declaring he was an idiot for not making out with Daniel yet. Max threatened to hang up the phone, but then explained he’d see Daniel again that night.

“I just don’t know what to wear.” Max sighed after a moment. Lando hummed, rolling onto his stomach again. 

“Show me your options.” 

Eventually Max settled for dark jeans and a rather tight dark red tshirt. A rather safe option, but safe was good for now.

A little after 9, Daniel called him again and Max rushed downstairs, running into Carlos on the way down.

“Hi Max.” the Spanish boy greeted, a friendly smile on his face.

“Hello.” Max answered, his confidence instantly sinking a little. He had worked together with Carlos on a few projects, and they got along well enough, but the boy ws cool and popular and everything he wasn’t. Carlos grinned and patted his shoulder.

“You are in for something though, Daniel’s car is a piece of shit.” Carlos huffed, leading him out of the building and just around the corner, where a very old and rather battered looking yellow car was waiting for them. Daniel honked the horn when he spotted them and popped his head out the window.

“Hola amigos!” he said. Max chuckled while Carlos pulled a face at the bad pronunciation. 

“You sit in the front.” Carlos told Max, before hopping in the backseat. As Max got in the car, he saw Carlos lean forwards and hug Daniel quickly in greeting. Daniel turned to max once the Dutchman was seated next to him, and leaned over for a hug as well. Max clumsily hugged back, smiling at the closeness.

The drive was not too bad. The car was indeed a duct taped piece of shit, but they arrived safely in the end.Max was glad when he realised Charles was there too, as he would at least know a few people to talk to. 

Carlos immediately sat down on the lap of the tall blonde guy Max had seen with the whole pizza debacle as well. Max looked away when Carlos grinned and kissed the man needily.

“You get used to them… Kinda.” Charles muttered from his other side. Max chuckled.

“As long as they are happy.” he said with a shrug, Charles hummed in agreement, before throwing his empty can of beer away and hitting Pierre, who was just walking to the kitchen, right on the back of the head. 

“Score!” Charles giggled, nudging Max with his shoulder. Max smiled as well, before squeaking as someone sat down on his other side. Daniel grinned at him, handing him one of the beers he was holding and making himself comfortable next to Max on the sofa.

“Having fun?” he asked. Max nodded.

“Thanks again for inviting me.” he said, inching a little closer to the Aussie. Daniel had a soft look on his face as he looked at Max, making something flutter in Max’s stomach. 

The remainder of the evening, Daniel barely moved from Max’s side, introducing him to his friends and making Max feel welcomed and comfortable. Eventually, it was getting late and a lot of people started to go home. Carlos went with Nico to the German’s apartment, and Charles went home with Pierre. Eventually, Max was left together with Daniel, plus Checo, who was snoring loudly from where he was sprawled on the larger sofa. 

“Well, I better get going as well.” Max said after moment, after they giggled together over Checo’s snoring. Daniel hesitated, looking outside at the rather bad weather.

“You can stay here if you want.” he said. “That’s probably better than walking to the bus stop in the rain.” he added. Max blinked.

“I… well only if you don’t mind.” he answered. Daniel smiled.

“It’s quite alright, you just need to decide if you want to sleep next to the Mexican snores here, or…” he cleared his throat. “I have a big enough bed too.” Max blushed and shyly averted his eyes.

“I suppose that’s better than trying to block out Checo.” Max said eventually. Daniel nodded and hopped onto his feet.

“Come on, you look tired, and so am I.” he said, holding out his hand to the Dutchman. Max took the outstretched hand and let himself he pulled along. He liked the warmth of Dan’s skin against his. 

It turned a little awkward when Daniel got undressed until he was just wearing his boxers, but Max quickly followed his example. They got in under the covers, eying each other hesitantly. Max eventually shuffled a little closer, peeking up at Dan through his eyelashes to gauge his reaction. Daniel smiled and reached over to place his hand on Max’s.

“Goodnight, Maxy.” he said softly. Max sighed and closed his eyes, finding himself lulled asleep by Daniel’s slowing breaths.

Max woke up comfortably cuddled against a warm chest. He lifted his head a little and sighed shakily when he realised it was Daniel. Daniel was still fast asleep, mouth slightly agape as he snored lightly. Max snuggled closer again, slipping an arm around the Aussie’s waist. He felt safe with Daniel, less insecure and awkward when he was with him. He doubted Daniel felt as strongly for him, but even if Max just got friendship from him, it would be more than he could have hoped for.

It was maybe half an hour later when Daniel woke up. Max pretended to be asleep, just to see how Dan would react to finding Max snuggled against him. He was more than surprised when he felt Daniel smile against his hair, the Aussie’s arms tightening around him. Max slowly opened his eyes.

“Hi…” he muttered softly. Dan yawned and hummed contently.

“Morning.” he said, rubbing at his eyes. Daniel reached for his phone, still not letting go of Max. “Want to watch a movie to wake up?” he muttered hoarsely. Max nodded, rolling onto his stomach. The ease between the two of them stayed as they laughed at some bad comedy, but halfway through the movie, Max seemed to finally realise what the time was. 

“Shit! There is a lunch party at the restaurant today.” he winched, almost falling off the bed in his hurry to get up. Dan chuckled as Max struggled to wiggle into his pants.

“I’ll drive you, okay?” he proposed, getting up to get dressed as well. Max thanked him, while worriedly trying to call Sebastian to let him know he was running late. He was so busy worrying that he didn’t say a word to Daniel during the drive, tapping his hand on his knee in a nervous gesture. Daniel glanced at him and then reached out to squeeze his hand, giving him a small smile.

“I’m sure it will be fine, right? They seem like nice guys.” he said. Max sighed shakily.

“They are, they are like family to me. But I just hate disappointing them like this.” he muttered. Daniel hummed in understanding as he parked the car in front of the restaurant and getting out together with Max. Max worriedly peeked inside to see a few people for the lunch party had already wandered in. He was just ready to burst into the restaurant when Dan caught his wrist.

“Hey Max, I was wondering… Do you want me to pick you up after your shift tonight? We could finish watching the movie then…” he said. Max blinked in surprise, but then grinned.

“I’d like that.” he answered. “I finish at 8 tonight, so I can bring pizza?” he asked. Daniel beamed at him.

“I never say no to pizza.” he answered, before pulling Max into a quick hug.

“Good luck.” he told Max. Max smiled.

“Thanks, see you tonight.” 

All throughout his shift, Max felt giddy and smiley, even joking around with Valtteri in the kitchen. Kimi and Sebastian hadn’t minded him being a little late, and the only payback they had was slyly teasing Max about Daniel and the hug. Max pouted and huffed at them for it, but couldn’t help but feel something flutter in his stomach everytime someone mentioned the Aussie. He was absolutely smitten already, and it felt like he had known Dan for ages already. A little before 8, Daniel walked into the restaurant, greeting Sebastian with a polite handshake that had Seb throw an approving look at Max.

Kimi quietly pushed two pizza boxes into Max’s hands, winking at the young man. 

“Have fun.” he muttered, ruffling Max’s hair. Max smiled back, blushing as he looked over at Daniel.

“Thanks, see you tomorrow.” he said, promptly leaning in to hug Kimi. Kimi seemed surprised, but hugged back, pressing a kiss to Max’s temple. 

“If he hurts you I’ll slash the tyres on his car, okay?” Kimi said, just loud enough for Daniel to hear it as well.

“See you tomorrow.” Max only answered, quickly grabbing Daniel’s hand and pulling him out of the building. It was only when they were outside that Max realised Dan was still holding on to his hand. Max tensed a little when Daniel let go, thinking the Aussie was offended by it, but then Dan slung his arm over Max’s shoulders to tug him more into his side. He tried to sneak a look into the pizza boxes Max was holding, but Max slapped his hand away.

“Patience.” he chuckled.

A few hours, two pizzas and 2 movies later, Max was contently tired, sprawled on one of the sofa’s in the common room of Dan’s building. He yawned and stretched lazily, his feet nudging Dan’s thigh. Daniel turned to him and smiled at the sleepy look on Max’s face.

“Come on.” he said, patting his lap. Max frowned in confusion, but let Dan nudge him around until Max could pillow his head on Dan’s legs. Max tensed a little, not quite knowing what to do, and squeaked in surprise as Dan’s fingers gently massaged his scalp. 

“I’ve got you, love, sleep a little.” Daniel whispered softly. Max hummed, but found his eyes fluttering closed, not even the sound of Charles catcalling them bothering him anymore.

He woke up from being jostled around. He clutched on to someone’s shoulders, groggily blinking to figure out what was going on. He took in a sharp breath when he realised Daniel was carrying him up the stairs, and wiggled around in the Aussie’s hold.

“I can walk.” he mumbled, rubbing at his eyes. Daniel chuckled.

“It’s like 4 more steps, I’ll manage.” he whispered soothingly. Max nodded quietly and settled for resting his head against Daniel’s shoulder. He hummed when Daniel gently placed him on to the bed moments later. Daniel smiled as Max stretched himself out in a rather cat-like fashion, and sat down next to him with his back resting against the headboard. He had a thoughtful look on his face, and it made Max slightly more apprehensive.

“Are you okay?” Max asked softly. Daniel looked down on him and brushed a stray piece of hair out from Max’s forehead. 

“I’m fine.” he said softly, lowering himself to lay down as well and rolling onto his side to face Max. Max smiled hesitantly at him.

“Thank you.” he blurted out. “For… well, for not being put off by my awkwardness.” Max whispered, reaching for Dan’s hand, but Daniel pulled his hand away.

“We need to talk.” he sighed. Max went rigid, pushing himself back so there was more distance between them. 

“I’m sorry I-I didn’t mean to be so clingy and-” he started to ramble. Daniel chuckled softly and pressed a hand over Max’s mouth to shut him up.

“It’s not like that.” he said softly. Max frowned a little, and pushed Dan’s hand away.

“Then what is it?” he muttered. Daniel moved closer, his hand moving onto Max’s cheek.

“I like you.” he said softly. Max’s eyes widened.

“I… I like you too… I don’t have a lot of friends here and-”

“I don’t like you as a friend.” Daniel interrupted softly. Max drew in a sharp breath.

“You… you like like me?” he mumbled. Daniel nodded, waiting for Max to react. 

“B-but you are popular, and handsome, and amazing. I’m just… boring, awkward and-” Max whispered. 

“You are perfect.” Daniel said softly. Max let out a shaky breath.

“You know I can still give you free pizza if we’re just friends, right?” he joked lightly. Dan snorted.

“Pizza is good. But you are even better.” he answered. Max blushed.

“You are really serious about this?” he asked. Dan nodded.

“Fuck yes I am.” he said strongly. Max leaned in slowly, lightly brushing his lips over Daniel’s.

“I-I like you too…” he whispered. Daniel beamed, eyes crinkling up at the sides.

“Good.” he said. Max snuggled closer, resting his head on Dan’s shoulder with a small smile playing on his lips.

“Good.’


End file.
